


Pirate's Life

by Marmeladeskies



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, Marius-centric, Minor canon divergence, Non-Explicit Sex, Piracy, Pirates, Seafaring, Tags May Change, a bit of self-discovery too, basically what I wanted was to give Marius a hot pirate boyfriend okay, brief scene of sexual harrassment (can be skipped), for now, marius is a soft boy, the author doesn't know anything about sailing so please don't ask too many questions, the crew of the mistake, the crew of the squall-eater, this is very self-indulgent
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:53:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26567626
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marmeladeskies/pseuds/Marmeladeskies
Summary: "After that, they travelled with actual, real pirates for a while- Avantika’s crew, all of them far more used to this lifestyle than either of them were. At least Gallan and Orly had skill to show for- Marius did not. So he did what he could do, not wanting to seem lazy or stupid, and went to bed with blisters everywhere, even more than before."Marius sails with the Mighty Nein, tries to prove himself and learns a few things about the life as a pirate, himself and the relationships and friendships in his life.(working title for this fic was: Gay Rights Means Give Marius A Hot Pirate Boyfriend so that's what I did.)
Relationships: Marius LePual & Original Character(s), Marius LePual & Orly, Marius LePual & Orly Skiffback, Marius LePual & Shelda, Marius LePual & The Mighty Nein, Marius LePual/Gallan Westman, Marius LePual/Original Male Character(s), The Mighty Nein & Original Character(s)
Comments: 21
Kudos: 42





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My working title for this was: Gay Rights Means Giving Marius A Hot Pirate Boyfriend so yeah. It's very self-indulgent and I had a lot of fun writing it. 
> 
> Heads up: there is a brief scene of sexual harrassment in this chapter. If you'd like to skip it, it starts right after Marius leaves the tavern and ends with "...the direction of a nearby brothel.". If you'd like a less detailed summary of it or anything, please lmk in the comments! 
> 
> Enjoy :)

The first man Marius had let himself get fucked by had been Gallan. 

It had been after a few weeks at sea, and the pirate life had changed all of them. Most of all, though, after weeks at sea without proper… company, some people became horny. Marius had seen Gallan sneak glances at him from time to time, and sometimes, he’d snuck glances back. Gallan wasn’t exactly a beauty- but his greying hair, his gap-toothed smile and his hearty laugh had their own charm. And so, when Gallan’s eyes had stuck to Marius’ bare chest in their cabin for a moment too long, Marius had simply dropped his pants as well.

Gallan had taken him against the cabin wall, standing up, with spit and lamp oil. It had been painful, at first, but only until it had started to feel good. 

By the end, Gallan had had to cover his mouth with one hand.

After, Marius had lain awake, eyes wide open, listening to the waves lapping against the side of the ship, replaying the fuck over and over again in his head. 

  
  


They never did it again after that one time, but that didn’t change the fact that Marius felt like something had  _ changed  _ inside of him. Or maybe not changed- more like, something had revealed itself. It was strange, and yet, incredibly freeing.

After that, they travelled with actual, real pirates for a while- Avantika’s crew, all of them far more used to this lifestyle than either of them were. At least Gallan and Orly had skill to show for- Marius did not. So he did what he could do, not wanting to seem lazy or stupid, and went to bed with blisters everywhere, even more than before. 

Avantika’s crew was made up of quite interesting individuals. Their tone was rough, and their drinking habits even rougher. 

One night, on the way to his cabin, Marius overheard a few of them talk in another cabin. 

“-blond one, I’d like to get a leg over that. He’s useless on deck, but I bet he’d be useful for a lot of other things, if you know what I mean. Keeping up the morale.”

“I bet he’d sound like a girl if you hit it right.”, followed by dirty laughter that brought heat to Marius’ cheeks. 

“I bet he’s a virgin.”

“Even better.” 

Marius held his breath, and moved just so he could peek through the slit in the door to see who was speaking about him like this. The first three, the ones who had been talking, he didn’t know their names. But he remembered them, they had worked together on the deck of the ship before: a red-haired dwarf with freckles that looked too dark in places, a human man with his hair shorn and one big earring, and another human man who looked like there might be a little bit of orcish blood in his family as well. 

But there was a fourth one in this cabin, sitting to the side a bit, leaning back with a book in his hand. He, too, was human- with rich, black skin, large green eyes with long lashes, and a perpetual quirk to his mouth. Marius even knew his name: Errik. 

The problem was, even though the other three hadn’t spotted Marius, Errik was looking right at him through the slit in the door. Marius felt his heart leap in his chest from the shock- but Errik simply  _ winked  _ at him. 

Marius didn’t hear what they said next- he was already hurrying away from the door as quietly as he could, heart thumping in his chest. 

  
  


The next time him and Errik worked together, Errik gave him a knowing grin. 

Later that same night, Marius found himself hidden between the large coils of spare rope they kept under the deck, with Errik’s cock in his mouth. 

A few days later, Errik fucked him bent over one of the canons, the smell of gunpowder filling Marius’ nose as he muffled his moans in the sleeve of his shirt. 

  
  
  


After that, they went to Darktow. Fucking Darktow, the pirate island Marius had only ever heard about in stories that were, what seemed like, closer to myths than to reality. But that was how his life was now, wasn’t it? Their captain had business there, and so they went. 

  
  


There were taverns in Darktow, and brothels, and lots of ale.

There also were more than a few people whose eyes seemed to linger on Marius. When a midnight blue Tiefling man bared his teeth at him in a big grin and told him that he “would like to take a bite out of that”, Orly pulled Marius away. 

“You’re looking entirely too innocent for this crowd… they think they can eat you for breakfast.” Gallan laughed, and Marius blushed, half at the comment, half at the idea of this tiefling man eating him in any way. 

Avantika’s crew was quite familiar with Darktow it seemed, and so the crew of the Mistake tagged along to the tavern of their choice. It was loud and rowdy, and it didn’t take long until many of the men were drunk, or drunker than usual. Marius spotted Errik with a girl in his lap- a whore, judging by her pink painted lips and the way her breasts were about to fall out of her bodice. 

Orly lit up his pipe, taciturn as ever, and Gallan was getting drunk with a few older members of Avantika’s crew. Marius suddenly felt like the odd one out, and the pipe smoke gave him a headache. 

“I’m gonna step out for a second.”, he told Orly, who just hummed in reply and then blew a smoke ring into the air. 

Marius left the tavern, and stepped into an alleyway next to it, taking a deep breath. People were drinking and celebrating in the streets as well, whatever was there to celebrate, but at least, the air wasn’t as thick as it was inside the tavern. Instead, it smelled like the ocean, grilled fish and a little bit like piss.

He leaned against the wall of the tavern, taking another breath, pulling on the sleeves of his shirt. Its beautiful ruffles were dirty now, and ripped in places. But Marius kind of liked it like that, it looked kind of rakish, matching his new lifestyle. Maybe he’d grow into this look more with time. For sure he would. 

“Oi, pretty boy.” The familiar voice startled Marius. When he looked up, two familiar figures were approaching: the human with the earring, and his friend, the orcish one- two of Errik’s cabin mates. Marius had since learned their names: Roan and Tak. His stomach clenched. 

“Me?” It came out squeaky and embarrassing. He swallowed. 

“‘Me?’”, the human, Roan, imitated his high-pitched tone as Tak let out a bout of venomous laughter, “Yes, you, goldilocks.” 

Marius looked back over his shoulder- the alley was a dead end, they had him trapped. Oh, hell. 

He carried a dagger at his belt, but so did Roan and Tak, in addition to what looked like short swords. 

“We know what’s going on with you and Errik.” Tak’s last step brought him uncomfortably close to Marius. Marius could smell the alcohol on his breath. “And we think it’s only fair you extend your… kindness to all of us.” 

Marius didn’t say anything, just stood there with his back pressed to the wall, his heart hammering in his chest. 

“Are you mute? Deaf? Stupid?”, Roan asked, stepping closer to Marius as well. “I s’pose it doesn’t matter, as long as you can hold still for a few minutes.” He let out a dirty laugh that sent shivers down Marius’ spine. 

Tak reached out, pushing Marius’ hair out of his eyes roughly. Marius turned away his face, but Tak seized his chin in an iron grip, fingertips pressing into his jaw bones to force his mouth open. 

Roan tsk-ed next to him. “Come on, Errik said you were so easy to convince. What’s wrong with me and my friend here, huh?” 

Marius struggled against the hold, black creeping into the edges of his vision. Was that it? Was this really what was happening right now? He tried to kick, tried to scream, but the only thing that happened was that Tak’s other, enormous hand seized his hips and held him pressed against the wall. The scream came out muffled, probably not even carrying to the end of the alleyway. 

Roan slowly reached out and pulled open the laced up collar of Marius’ shirt, taking his time. Marius felt his skin break out into goosebumps all over, and his stomach churned. Maybe he’d puke on them, he thought bitterly, maybe that would drive them away. 

Roan pulled away the fabric, freeing Marius’ bare chest. “As hairless as an altar boy.” 

Marius felt red spots forming on his neck and cheeks. 

“I wonder if that’s the same all over.”, Tak mused, his voice like gravel on a blackboard. 

“Let’s find out.” Roan reached for the waistband of Marius’ trousers- Marius tried to kick him again, struggling against Tak’s hold, trying to bite at Tak’s fingers-

“Roan? Tak? Where the fuck are you two dumbfucks?” 

Errik’s voice from the end of the alleyway. Roan and Tak didn’t let go off Marius, but at least they looked up, and so did Marius. 

Errik stood there, the girl from before hanging off his arm, and another one leaning into his side. “I got us some entertainment. What the fuck are you two doing out here?” 

The way Errik’s eyes lingered on Marius, on his open shirt and on Tak’s big hands on his body told Marius that Errik knew exactly what they were doing. 

“Trying to find our own entertainment.”, Roan drawled. 

“Him?” Errik’s face turned into an expression of disdain. “Leave it be, I hear he’s got some sort of illness. Syphilis, maybe.” 

As if Marius was suddenly made of white hot steel, both Tak and Roan pulled back their hands. Marius slumped against the wall, his breath leaving him. His heart was still galloping in his chest, and he felt like he was truly about to vomit. 

“Come on, now, I’m paying by the hour.” The two girls by Errik’s side giggled. 

Roan and Tak exchanged a glance. Then, Roan shrugged, and started off in Errik’s direction. One of the girls immediately threw herself at him. Tak looked down at Marius, and spat out in front of him before following Roan. 

Marius didn’t even care that the spittle had hit his boot. His breath was going quickly and heavily as he looked up to catch Errik’s eyes, mouthing a breathless ‘thank you’.

Errik’s lips curled in disgust, and then he turned, slapping the whore’s ass as they left into the direction of a nearby brothel. 

-

Marius gave himself five minutes to sit on the floor and just catch his breath, let his heart slow down. He was okay. He was alright. They hadn’t harmed him.

Then, he picked himself up, and laced his shirt back up hastily, before starting off into the direction of the Mistake. 

He walked fast, his feet carrying him in the direction of the docks mechanically, arms crossed over his chest, eyes cast down. All he wanted was to lock himself in his cabin. 

He couldn’t hold back the tears, though. Marius had always been an easy crier- his father had beat him for it many times, which had only made him cry more. He hated it- the way the tears ran into his mouth, the way his nose clogged up and his cheeks turned red and splotchy. 

He wiped at his face with the sleeve of his shirt while running, glad that his hair covered half of it when he kept his head down. 

The more he approached the docks, the less people he passed. Good. 

He’d almost reached the Mistake, which was docked right in front of the much larger Squalleater. Marius sped up his steps, but in doing so, missed an uneven cobblestone, his foot catching, making him stumble and fall face first onto the pavement. His knees scraped across the ground painfully, and when he caught himself with his hands, there was an ugly crack and more pain.

Marius let out a curse word from between clenched teeth, and slowly rolled over onto his butt, holding his wrist, examining his bloody knees. His pants were ruined. This was, for once without exaggeration, the worst night of his life. The tears, just having run dry, welled up again, and Marius pulled his knees up, rolling into a ball right here on the dock, everything hurting. He wasn’t cut out for this life, he should have let the Mighty Nein throw him off the ship long ago. How could he ever have thought he was going to survive as a pirate? 

“Are you alright?”, a smooth, male voice asked from above Marius.

“Do I look alright?!”, Marius hissed without looking up.

“No, that’s why I’m asking.” There was an accent in the voice, vaguely marquesian, but a little harsher. 

When Marius heard footsteps on wood, and then, stone, he finally looked up. 

A man was approaching him, tall, with a narrow waist and square shoulders, a polished scimitar sheath hanging from his belt. He was dressed in leather armor and simple linen clothing. Marius couldn’t properly make out his face in the half-dark of the docks. 

“Did you hurt yourself?” For how tall the man was, his tone was surprisingly gentle. 

Marius nodded mechanically. “I think I sprained my wrist.”

“May I?” The man kneeled down in front of him, holding out a hand. 

If Orly could see him right now, Marius thought, he would never leave him out of sight again. 

He slowly held out his throbbing wrist to the man. 

Now, this close up, Marius could make out his features: a handsome, square jaw, high cheekbones, black, wavy mid-length hair and a black moustache. The three things that were striking about this man, though, were his silvery grey eyes, the enormous scar that ran from the right corner of his mouth all the way down to his throat, and the fact that he only looked a little older than Marius. 

The man, in return, also seemed to take in Marius’ face- grey eyes wandering from the wet, red cheeks to the bruises forming on his jaw to his hastily laced up shirt. “What happened to you?” 

To Marius’ horror, that question was all it took to force a sob out of him. “S-sorry.”, he stuttered, avoiding the man’s eyes. His expression had changed from confused to concerned as he gently turned Marius’ wrist. 

“Come, we’ll fix your wrist. And I have some whiskey.” 

Marius let the man pull him up to his feet, but then hesitated. Would it be stupid to go with this stranger? Minutes after he had literally been attacked in an alleyway? 

The man seemed to sense his hesitation, turning back around to look at him as he walked up the gangplank of the ship Marius had fallen in front of. 

“I don’t bite, I promise.” 

Marius slowly began to follow. This night couldn’t get any worse.

  
  


The man led him onto the quarter deck of the ship and sat him down on a crate. “Wait here.” 

Marius did, having a look around. The ship was enormous, much bigger than the Squalleater, and even though the flag that was hoisted was a purple Revelry one, the make of the ship reminded Marius of the Empire Armada ships he’d seen before. Interesting.

The pain in his voice had turned into a dull throb, and his knees felt raw. His eyes stung, still, and so did his heart. At least he wasn’t nauseous anymore. For a moment, Marius closed his eyes and took a deep breath. 

“Here.” A glass hit the crate next to him. Marius opened his eyes to find the man leaning against the railing, another glass in his hands, looking down at him with his brows furrowed. “There are laws in Darktow, you know. I don’t know what exactly happened to you, but I think I can guess. Rape is illegal here, like it is everywhere else.” 

The words were out before Marius could stop himself. “They didn’t get that far.”, he spat out bitterly. 

“Good.” A muscle in the man’s jaw clenched. “Drink.”

Marius did. The whiskey warmed his stomach, and he emptied the glass in one go. 

When he lowered it, to his surprise, he could already feel the pain in his wrist and his knees subsiding a bit. The skin didn’t mend, but the pain became a low, dull ache. He looked up at the man in surprise. 

“...one of my crew makes it. Pretty helpful at times.”, the man explained, taking a sip of his own glass. 

“...thank you.”, Marius said quietly. 

“What’s your name?”

“Marius. LePual.” He hesitated, then added, “Boatswain of the Mistake.” He vaguely gestured into the direction of where the Mistake was docked.

A hint of amusement appeared on the grey-eyed man’s face at that. “Pleased to meet you, Marius LePual. My name is Everard Wyck. Captain of the Lone Tide.” He patted the ships’ railing. 

Marius felt his mouth fall open. “This is  _ your  _ ship?” 

Everard gave a nod. “Yes. Are you surprised?” The hint of amusement in his voice translated into a handsome half-smile.

“No.”, Marius lied, but then corrected it to a “Yes.” when Everard cocked a brow at him. “...no offense, you just look quite young.”

Everard shrugged, taking another sip of his whiskey. “I was sort of born into it. How’s your wrist?” 

“Better.” Marius slowly moved it a bit. The pain was manageable. “...we have a cleric on the Mistake. Two actually.” Even though he wasn’t entirely sure if Jester ever healed anyone. Caduceus would, though, for sure. 

“Sounds like a curious crew.”, Everard commented idly, and Marius couldn’t help but laugh dryly. 

“You could say that.” 

“Hm.” Marius could still feel Everard’s intense eyes on him, tracing the rips in his trousers. “...may I fix that for you?” 

“Yes, of course. Thank you.” 

Everard leaned forward, reaching out until his hand hovered over Marius’ scraped knees. He mumbled a few arcane words, and a moment later, the fabric of Marius’ trousers mended back together, not leaving behind a seam. 

“Thank you.”, Marius repeated, and then added, quietly, “For all your kindness.”

“Any crew member shall treat any captain as if it was their captain, and any captain shall take care of any crew member as if they were part of his own crew.”, Everard quoted, “I take the Code seriously.” 

Marius gave him a small smile. “Thank you anyway.” 

“You’re welcome.” 

“You know, before I became one myself, I always thought pirates were uneducated brutes.”, Marius said quietly, looking down at his hands. “I mean, some are.” His good hand slowly rose to touch the bruises on his jaw. “...just… not all of them.”

“Where are you from?”, Everard asked. 

“Nicodranas.”, Marius replied. “I was kind of… dragged into all of it. My captain and his friends basically captured a ship, with me and a few others on it.” 

Everard’s eyebrows rose even higher. “Who’s your captain?”

“Captain Tusktooth.” Marius could see by Everard’s expression that he didn’t recognize the name. “...but at the moment we’re kind of working with Captain Avantika.” 

There it was, the recognition. “Do you like working under her?”, Everard asked, voice carefully neutral. 

Marius hummed. “I haven’t really seen much of her so far, to be honest. Her crew seems…” He paused, fingers slowly massaging his jaw again, “...rowdy.” 

Everard’s eyes hardened at that. “Avantika has always had quite the loose hand with her crew.”, he said, an edge in his voice. “You should talk to your Captain if her crew members did this to you.”

Marius let out a joyless laugh at the idea of telling Fjord about how two of Avantika’s crew members had assaulted him in an alleyway. “I think I’m good.”

“Don’t you trust your Captain?”, Everard asked. There was a handsome crease in his forehead. 

“It’s complicated. He… most of our crew are his friends, and they… they like to make fun of me.”, Marius replied, casting down his eyes. 

Everard gave him a long look, brows furrowed deeply. “A lot of ...strange things going on on your ship, it seems.” 

“Oh, yeah. You could say that.” Marius nodded. There was a tiredness settling over him, making his limbs feel like lead. A yawn broke out of him, hard enough to make his bruised jaw hurt. “Sorry. A lot has happened tonight.”, he apologized sheepishly.

“Don’t apologize.”, Everard gave Marius a lopsided smile, “I’ll walk you to your ship- you’ve had enough bad luck tonight.” 

  
  


-

Marius found himself walking at a leisurely pace with Everard beside him, suddenly not that eager to get back to the mistake again. 

“How long have you been Captain of your ship?”, he asked curiously as they passed other ships of various sizes and states. 

“About five years now.”, Everard answered. “Started with a smaller ship, though.”

“The Lone Tide…”, Marius stopped, wondering if this question would overstep a boundary he didn’t know about. 

“...was an Armada ship, yes.”, Everard finished his thought, a smirk on his face. “My father’s, to be precise.” 

“Your father?!” Marius almost stopped walking.

Everard let out a low, pleasant laugh. “Yes. My old man sails under the flag of the Empire. The sailing is about the only thing we have in common.” 

“That’s-” like something straight out of a book, Marius didn’t say- he’d been mocked for his reading habit one too many times on the ship before. “...crazy. How come you chose a life of piracy?”

“I would call it a family disagreement.”, Everard said lightly. They had almost reached the Mistake. 

Marius felt much better than before- his tears had dried, even though his eyes still felt sore, as did his knees and his wrist. But surely, he could find Caduceus. Right when he was about to thank Everard again, someone called his name from the deck of the Mistake. 

“Mmm-Marius!” 

Marius didn’t know if he’d ever heard Orly yell like this- there was worry in his voice. 

“Where the hell have you been?” 

“This your captain?” Everard asked doubtfully. 

“No, that’s Orly, our navigator.”, Marius replied, a small grin on his face. The proof that Orly did care about him was rather nice. 

“Ah, so you’re in safe hands now.” They had reached the gangplank of the Mistake, and Everard stopped, giving Marius a gallant little bow and a rather charming smile.

“Thank you so much for your hospitality.”, Marius said, entirely ignoring Orly who came stomping towards them upstairs on the deck. 

“Like I said, no thanks needed. My pleasure.” Everard took a step backwards. “Stay safe.” 

“I’ll do my best.” 

Everard’s expression turned serious for a moment. “If they ever bother you again… we’ll be docked here for another week or so.” 

Marius felt his cheeks flush. “...thank you. I’ll remember that.” 

“Good night, Marius LePual.”

“Good night, Captain Wyck.” 

Everard gave him another charming smile, and then turned, walking away, boots clicking on the cobblestone. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life with the Mighty Nein is unpredictable, but at least Marius is learning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the kudos on the last chapter :) I knew that the audience for a fic like this would be small but it’s nice to know that I can bring joy to a few of you at least haha. 
> 
> Also yes I know that’s not how sending works but just let it fly ok

Orly chewed him out for just disappearing. 

Marius didn’t tell him what exactly had happened right after he’d left the tavern- the only thing he did tell Orly was that those bruises and his scraped knees weren’t Everard’s doing. 

That night, when he lay on his cot, his wrist bandaged by Orly, the uneasy memories of Tak and Roan came back, and the ugly memory of Errik’s snarl. 

If they ever bother you again… 

Yeah, maybe Marius would pay the Lone Tide another visit. 

  
  


-

  
  


He didn’t get that far though, because the next day, as it seemed to be so customary for the Mighty Nein, all hell broke loose, and by the end of it, Marius found himself sailing away from Darktow on the Squall-Eater, bruised and a little singed, with the memories of Roan’s bloody body face down in the sea in his head. 

No matter how crazy their captain and his friends were- they were quite capable in battle. And now, Avantika was dead, and so were some of her crew. A few remaining ones they had taken with them- the Squall-Eater was a large ship, and it would take more than the ten of them to keep it running. 

Jester had cast Zone of Truth on the few remaining crew members of the Squalleater who had claimed they wanted to stay, and so, their crew had doubled in size. 

Marius looked back at Darktow, the Isle getting smaller and smaller as they sailed away from it. 

-

That night, right when sleep was about to take him, there was a sensation in the back of his mind, a tingling in his brain. And then, suddenly, Everard’s voice. 

“ _Hello. This is Everard Wyck. Shame we didn’t get to say goodbye in person, Marius, but your crew definitely had a grand exit.”_ A pause, then another one, “ _Avantika deserved what she got. I hope you are well. Farewell, Marius, I hope our paths will cross again some time. Be safe_.” 

Warmth spread across Marius’ cheeks. He knew he could reply to this spell- he’d seen Orly reply to Jester’s messages before. 

“Thank you, Everard. I am well, just a bit scratched up. And banned from Darktow.” He couldn’t help but laugh. “It truly is a shame that we couldn’t say goodbye in person. I hope to see you again as well. I don’t know where we are going next, though. Farewell, Everard.”

Marius went to sleep with a smile on his face that night. 

-

After that, a whole lot of other crazy stuff happened and weeks passed before they returned to Nicodranas. 

When they eventually docked in the Open Quay under the watchful eye of the Wildmother’s lighthouse, it really dawned on Marius how much he had changed during their time at sea. The night the Mighty Nein had kidnapped him from the docks felt like it was years in the past. 

-

Messages from Everard didn’t come often, but regularly. 

Sometimes it was just one or two, sometimes more- it made Marius’ heart warm up when he thought about how much of his magic Everard must spend on him when that happened. 

It was a strange arrangement they had. Through all of those messages, Everard had Marius thinking about him way too much for a man he’d only met once. But it felt like Everard was his little secret, and every time Marius learned something new about him, it went into a little mental note book. 

After a while, Marius found himself looking at men with dark hair when they were out in the taverns in Nicoranas, but none of them had those grey eyes or that scar. 

The Mighty Nein had gone off on some other mission, and in the meantime, the crew of the Squall-Eater- Marius refused to call it by its new name- was under Orly’s command, earning their bosses money, and making a decent amount themselves. Marius spent his first paycheck on new clothes, and his second one on a new sword. 

He found himself spending more and more time with crew members, even outside of their work on the ship. After they had arrived in Nicodranas, most of Avantika’s former crew members had broken from the crew- only one had stayed: a young woman named Shelda. Her presence meant that Marius finally wasn’t the youngest member of the crew anymore, and even though Shelda seemed rough and scary at first, she was actually pretty nice once Marius got to know her. She had a dry sense of humor, was very protective of the ship, and had grown up in Darktow as the daughter of one of the whores, so she knew a lot about sailing, ships, and piracy. And people. 

Her and Marius made up a game whenever they went to a tavern together: guessing other patrons’ backstories. They got into trouble over it more than once when people caught them staring, but it was worth it- Marius wasn’t sure if he’d ever laughed this much before.

He barely saw his old friends in Nicodranas anymore; a few of them had gotten married, another had had a child, and none of them seemed to have missed him all that much. But it was fine- Marius had new friends now. 

With every trip they took, whether it was a delivery mission or ferrying rich people somewhere tropical- Marius learned. He learned more about sailing, about navigating, about the ship in general. And he could tell he was getting better, and stronger. His arms started to fill out the sleeves of his shirts more and more, and his hair was starting to bleach from all the saltwater and sun, standing out even more against his tanning skin. 

“You’ll always be a pretty boy.”, Shelda told him one night, and Marius knew she was right- but there was a difference between soft-pretty and roguishly handsome. 

And it didn’t matter anyway; here in Nicodranas, Marius found, there were enough sailors who seemed to like ‘pretty’. Enough to go home with him, or sometimes to an inn, or sometimes just into a dark enough corner of the harbour. 

Shelda rolled her eyes at him whenever he disappeared with another one- but later, she asked him for all the details, and Marius gave them willingly. 

The one time he didn’t tell her anything was when he took a man back to the Squall-Eater with him. The others all had gone out, and so Marius let his fling of the night, a handsome half-elf sailor from Port Damali with tattoos up and down his arms, fuck him in the crow’s nest, the noises of the city washing over him.

Right when his fling had rolled him over onto his stomach, thrusts speeding up, the familiar pulling sensation in the back of his brain set in. For a second, Marius thought he was about to come- but then, Everard’s voice sounded in his head, louder than Marius’ moans. 

“ _Marius- just wanting to let you know that we will be sailing near Nicodranas soon. Maybe our paths will finally cross again. See you soon.”_

Marius bit his lip until he tasted copper- if he moaned now, if he said anything now, Everard would hear it. And for a moment, he almost succeeded… until his fling pushed deeper, and came inside of him. A moan broke out of Marius, and even though he slapped his hands over his mouth immediately, it was already out. Fuck. Marius came, with the echo of Everard’s voice in his mind, and the knowledge that Everard had most likely heard all of it. 

-

The messages stopped after that, and Marius felt terrible about it. He hated that he had no way of communicating with Everard without Everard messaging him first. Sure, he could ask someone, but that would mean giving up their secret. 

Weeks went by without a single message, and Marius found himself sad about it. There was no talk about the Lone Tide near Nicodranas either, and it made Marius feel like he had somehow lost Everard.

Luckily, the Mighty Nein were back to distract him from his grief soon after. Whenever their captain and his friends were about, there was little time to think about things like that, and even though Marius still found himself wondering where Everard might be right now when he lied on his cot at night, work kept him more than busy. 

Their goal this time was to participate in the brokering of peace between the Empire and the Dynasty, which, apparently, their captain and his friends had somehow had a hand in. Marius had long since learned not to question the Mighty Nein- but this was new heights, even for them. 

After they brought that crazy thing behind themselves successfully, they were on their way to Rumblecusp, which apparently had something to do with Jester’s god. Again, Marius tried not to question it. 

Of course they ran into complications: some strange sea monsters that tried to kill Fjord- and actually succeeded- left the entire crew shell-shocked for a few days. Orly had died, as well, and even though Caduceus had revived him, it left a mark on all of them, even though Orly tried to downplay it. But when Marius actually hugged him after, Orly let him. 

-

They were three days away from Rumblecusp when Marius was woken by a commotion on deck. There was shouting, and footsteps, and so he quickly got up from his cot, grabbed his weapons, threw on a linen shirt and hurried up outside onto the deck. The entire Mighty Nein were already gathered starboard, and Caleb was leaning heavily against Beau, which usually meant his fey cat-bird-octopus was scouting somewhere. Next to him, Fjord was fumbling with binoculars.

“What’s happening?”, Marius asked, trying to shake the sleep out of his bones. 

“Sh.”, Beau shushed him, not even looking at him. He rolled his eyes. 

“This ship has been following us for some time.”, Jester answered his question, pointing into the middle distance. “We’re trying to see what they want.” 

Marius narrowed his eyes- his eyesight wasn’t perfect, and it was hard to make out what the ship looked like, in the twilight, from this distance. 

“Maybe we should let them come closer, see what their deal is.”, Beauregard said quietly.

“We can blast them with Control Water if they get too close.”, Jester nodded. That had saved their asses once before, Marius remembered. 

“Mmmm-Marius!” Orly’s voice cut through the air, pulling his attention away from the other ship. “Stop standing around! Get to work!” 

“Aye!” Marius felt himself blush- he’d just been curious! But he did what he was told, working the sails to give them a speed boost. 

But nothing seemed to work, and as the other ship gained on them quickly- it was much larger than the Squall-Eater- everyone became increasingly nervous. 

And then, suddenly, a shout of anger- but from a voice Marius had never heard like this before: Caleb, hands clutching the railing, shouting up at the sky. Marius followed his line of sight, as did everyone else. 

Frumpkin, which Caleb had transformed into a red and green parrot, was hurtling through the sky- a hawk right behind him. Frumpkin cawed, loud enough that it could be heard over the waves, and Marius could swear that there was fear in that noise. 

Frumpkin turned, almost did a somersault mid air- but the hawk was faster, stronger, and when its claws wrapped around Frumpkin, it cawed triumphantly before driving it’s beak into the parrots neck. 

Frumpkin exploded into a million shiny pieces mid air.

“Frumpy!”, Jester yelled from somewhere, shock in her voice. 

The hawk didn’t seem surprised in the slightest that its prey had dissolved into thin air. Instead, it cawed once more, and turned, circling the ship. 

Nott- no, Veth was her name now- let out a wild scream, followed by the noise of her crossbow being loaded. The bolt hit the hawk dead-on. For a second it looked like it just went by, or through, without doing any damage- but then the hawk disintegrated in the same way Frumpkin had before. 

“That’s someone’s Familiar!”, Fjord yelled from the poop deck. “They have a wizard!”

“Control water?”, Caduceus yelled up at their captain, urgency in his voice. Marius found himself clinging to the shrouds, eyes transfixed on the other ship that was coming closer and closer. They had lit some kind of light, probably magical, and Marius could make out a few figures on deck- far more than they were. The ship was also significantly larger than the Squall-Eater. 

“Control water!”, Fjord bellowed back, gripping the stern tightly. 

“I’ll ready the cannons!”, Veth screamed, and off she went. 

The Mighty Nein assembling for a fight was a sight to behold, Marius had to give them that. But he also knew that he’d be rather glad if they could avoid another fight tonight. The shock of Orly’s death sat deep in his bones, still. 

Caduceus stepped back, away from the railing, holding out his hands, staff in one of them, closing his eyes in concentration. 

Both Gallan and Shelda had also come up from their cabins in the meantime, Gallan with a big hammer against one shoulder, looking around for an explanation, and Shelda with her scimitar on one hip, and her gun on the other, looking grim, pissed, and sleepy. 

“What the fuck is going on here?”, she yelled up at Marius. In lieu of a reply, he just pointed into the direction of the approaching ship. She squinted, a few quick steps bringing her closer to the railing. 

“...that’s an Armada ship.”

“What?”, Beauregard yelled at her from the poop deck where she stood by Fjord’s side with binoculars. 

“I said, that’s an Armada ship! Empire! Dwendalian?!”, Shelda yelled back at her, unable to keep her annoyance out of her voice. 

“Why are they attacking us then!”, Beauregard groaned, but before anyone could give her an answer, blue energy began to radiate off of Caduceus. 

The water around halfway between the two ships began to rise, and rise, and rise as Caduceus slowly lifted his staff. And then, with a step forward, he released it into one massive, twenty foot tall wave that immediately started rolling towards the other ship. 

Jester let out a happy cheer, and Caleb shouted “Well done!”- 

but before their joy could take over, something else happened.

There was another blue glow in the distance, and suddenly, a second wave came rolling towards them, crushing into Caduceus’.   
  
The impact made the Squall-Eater rock, throwing them off-course- Marius held tightly onto the shroud as the boat rocked back and forth. 

“Get ready for an attack!”, Fjord yelled, trying to get the helm under control. “Caduceus, can you cast Control Water again?” 

The other ships was gaining more and more, and was barely a mile away from them now- 

“They’re flying the Revelry flag! Look!” Shelda pointed to the other ship’s mast- and indeed, the purple flag was whipping in the air there. “They’re pirates!”

“So are we!”, Beauregard shouted back. 

“But we don’t have one of those flags because we’re banned from FUCKING DARKTOW!” Shelda yelled over her shoulder, as she ran and jumped, catching a rope, swinging herself up to the sails. “They must think we’re just some trade ship or something!” 

“Gods FUCKING damn it!”

“Caduceus!” 

  
  
  


While everyone else was shouting, Marius’ ears started to ring. 

An Empire Armada ship. Flying the Revelry flag. 

There was a blue glow again as Caduceus was getting ready to cast control water again- 

“No, wait! Stop!”

Nobody listened- Caleb spread out his hands which were starting to glow a deep orange- a pink flash signalled that Jester was summoning her spiritual weapon- Fjord’s sword appeared in his hand- Yasha reached onto her back to grab her massive sword- Beauregard took off running across the entire length of the ship in seconds, then took an enormous leap, landing on the bowsprit, holding onto it like a cat- 

“STOP!” This was louder than anything Marius’ voice had ever produced before. His voice carried, and all of a sudden, everyone was looking at him. “Stop! I know this ship! I know the captain! We can talk to them!” 

His heart felt like it was about to explode out of his chest any second. 

Quickly, he climbed down the shroud, letting himself drop the last meter, not caring that it hurt his feet, before sprinting to the railing, ignoring the shouts of “What the FUCK, Marius!”. 

The Lone Tide towered over the Squall-Eater, truly an impressive ship. 

And at the bow of it stood a familiar figure, a long grey coat whipping in the wind. 

Marius forgot how to breathe for a moment. 

Everard’s scimitar was still sheathed, but three globules of light circling around him, emanating blue light, made him look like a living figurehead, an impressive captain. 

Marius stretched out his arms as wide as he could, and waved. “Everard!” 

“Have you lost your gods-damned mind?!”, Fjord yelled at him; from the bow, Beauregard screamed “What the FUCK, Marius?!”, yet again- but Marius ignored them, jumping up and down.

“Everard! Captain Wyck!” 

“What the hell are you doin’, boy?!” Even Orly was yelling at him now, but Marius just kept on waving- the Lone Tide came closer and closer, and Marius could pin-point the exact moment Everard recognized him-

And then, suddenly, two strong, thick arms wrapped around him, subduing him with ease. 

Marius choked out a “No!” as Yasha pulled him away from the railing, kicking his feet, but she was too strong for him. She dragged him away, pulled him back towards the mast-

“I know him, Yasha, he’s nice, I met him on Darktow-” 

The enormous barbarian woman didn’t listen, instead simply held down his arms with her own, hands clasped over his chest. 

“I swear, Marius, if you just got all of us killed, I will hunt you down in the afterlife!”, Beauregard bellowed at him as she raced by. 

“I don’t-” Marius’ sentence was cut short by the familiar pulling sensation in the back of his brain, the one he hadn’t felt in weeks, and a single words came through-

“ _Marius?!“_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don’t forget to leave kudos if you’re enjoying it, and a comment to lmk what you think! <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two captains strike a deal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank you for all of your sweet feedback! It's nice to know that some people have the same niche taste as me haha
> 
> also we're low key throwing shade at the M9 today so be prepared . Also, all of this is very cheap-romance-novel-y but I hope y'all enjoy that as much as I do lol

_ “Marius?!” _

“Yes, it’s me! Everard, it’s me! This is the Squall-Eater, we’re on our way to Rumblecusp, don’t attack, you can talk to my Captain-” 

“Who are you talking to?”, Yasha asked incredulously, not easing off of Marius. 

“The captain of that ship! I told you I know him! Captain Everard Wyck! I met him on Darktow!” Why did they all have to be this stupid! 

“Yasha, let me go, I promise, I’m not lying-” He tried to wiggle free, but the barbarian woman was simply too strong. But after a moment of hesitation, she moved back towards the railing. 

In the meantime, the entire Mighty Nein had gathered on deck again- but Marius only looked up at the Lone Tide which was now slowly turning portside, in no hurry-

By now, the voices coming from the deck of the Lone Tide were audible- Marius heard yelling-

“VETH, FIRE!”

“NO!”, Marius shrieked- but it was too late.

A cannon exploded belowdecks, and a moment later, a hole splintered open in the side of the Lone Tide.

“YOU BLASTED IDIOTS!” Marius was now struggling against Yasha’s hold in earnest, kicking and squirming in her arms. 

“Are you mad?! Do you know how heavily Armada Ships are armed?!” Shelda raced up the stairs to the poop deck, yelling at Fjord, all respect lost in the heat of the moment, “They’ll sink us!” 

“Not if we sink them first!”

“That’s not a fight we can win, especially if they have mages-”

_ “Well, that was rude.”  _

The familiar voice carried across the last little bit of distance that was left between the Squall-Eater and the Lone Tide- Marius stopped dead in his tracks at it. 

Everard stepped to the edge of the Lone Tide’s deck, casually leaning against the railing. Two more people followed to stand by his sides: an enormous Goliath woman, arms crossed over her broad chest, and a human man with deep black skin, a pile of dreadlocks wrapped in a scarf piled on top of his head. 

_ “Let’s have a chat before we make any hasty decisions, huh?”  _

Everard’s voice was like honey in the air. 

Marius, and the entire crew of the Squall-Eater watched as Everard held up an elegant hand- water began to swirl around it, and then, suddenly, it seemed to take over his hand, his arm, spreading all the way across his skin until he seemed to be  _ made  _ of water, a small maelstrom- and then he vanished, for one second, two seconds-

A wet, splashing noise, and suddenly, Everard stood in the middle of the Squall-Eater’s deck, hands in the air defensively. 

“Good evening.” His eyes found Marius’, and Marius felt his heart jump in his chest when Everard gave him a wink. 

A moment later, the dark-skinned wizard landed next to Everard, having gently floated over onto their ship. The goliath woman chose a less elegant route- she simply ran, and lept, propelling herself forward by grabbing the railing. In what looked like a very practised motion, Everard stretched his hand out into the air, muttering an arcane word- Marius saw Caleb, from the corner of his eye, lifting his hands, getting ready to counterspell it. But all that happened was that the woman, already being hurled through the air, seemed to gain even more momentum, enough to make her land by Everard’s side with a heavy thud. 

She stood, dusting herself off before looking around out of red, beady eyes. 

The Mighty Nein stood, frozen, all of them taut as a bow. 

“My name is Everard Wyck, Captain of the Lone Tide. This is Hilla, my first mate, and this is Aurum, my navigator and mage.” Everard gave a little bow towards the poop deck. Neither Hilla nor Aurum moved as they were introduced.    
Fjord was slowly coming down the stairs, sword nowhere to be seen, a wary look on his face. “Are you the captain of this ship?”

“Yes. I am. Captain Stone of the Ball-Eater.” Marius could see that Fjord cringed at the name. If it amused Everard, he didn’t show it. “My first mate, Beauregard.” Beau stepped closer, crossing her arms, “And our navigator, Orly.” Orly gave a slow nod.

“Captain Stone, nice to make your acquaintance.” Everard furrowed his brows. “You seem familiar, if I may say so.” 

“Yes, I used to sail under a different name, on a different ship-”

“The Mistake!”, Marius called out- Beau immediately shushed him while Yasha clamped a big hand over his mouth, “Shut up, Marius.”

There was an angry twitch in Everard’s brow, just for a second. “The Mistake?”, he repeated, not looking away from Fjord, features smoothing over. “Interesting.” A nasty little smile curled up the corners of his lips. “...Avantika’s demise.”

“Indeed.” Fjord had reached the bottom of the stairs.

“You’re not flying Revelry colors anymore.” 

“If you remember our… ordeal with Avantika, you might also remember that we were banned from Darktow.”, Fjord said coldly. “Flying Revelry colors would be a grave violation of the Code.” 

“Hmm…” Slowly, Everard took a few steps, wandering almost idly… towards Marius. Marius could feel his heart hammer in his chest, could feel his cheeks heat up at the sight of Everard right here on the ship- “You’re sailing dangerous waters, Captain Stone. Looking like a trade ship no less.” 

Fjord didn’t comment on that- instead, he stood, one hand on the railing of the stairs, forcefully casual. 

“You damaged my ship.” One could have heard a needle drop. 

“I apologize.”, Fjord said immediately, voice hard, “But you were pursuing us, and we felt threatened. Besides, you killed our mage’s familiar.”

Caleb let out an angry snort. Aurum slowly turned his head towards the other mage at that- Marius could see rich golden eyes slowly dragging over Caleb’s face. Caleb stared back, expression hard. 

“That is true.”, Everard said slowly. He was only a few meters away from Marius now. Marius began to struggle against Yasha’s hold again. “I apologize for our threatening presence, you see, the Lone Tide is… a lot of ship.” Ten pairs of eyes watched as Everard took another step, and then another- and then reached out towards Marius slowly. “Marius. What a nice surprise to see you again.” The smile in his eyes was genuine this time, if only for a second. 

Marius wondered if there had ever been a greater satisfaction than seeing the entire crew of the Squall-Eater balk at him like this. Shelda threw her hands up at him in the universal gesture for ‘What the fuck?’. 

“Would you mind letting my friend here go?”, Everard asked gallantly. Yasha hesitated for a moment, but then, suddenly, Marius was free again, not being held anymore. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, beaming at Everard. 

“Hello, Captain Wyck.” 

Everard gave him another wink before turning sharply back to face Fjord. “You see, even though I understand your reasoning, you still damaged my ship, Captain Stone.” 

Marius could feel his smile falter. There was a muscle twitching in Fjord’s jaw as Everard continued. 

“...and since you’re neither flying Revelry colors, nor allowed back on Darktow… I’m not sure if the Code still applies.” 

The entire crew of the Squall-Eater shifted. Marius felt his fingertips go cold, adrenaline spiking in him.

“Are you threatening us, Captain Wyck?”, Fjord asked slowly, a dangerous edge to his voice. 

“I’m simply stating the facts, Captain Stone.” Everard spread his arms wide. “I’ve seen what you and your crew can do, on Darktow. Impressive, really. But you’re not the only ship with such a capable crew.” 

Marius blinked up to the Lone Tide’s deck- more people had gathered there, and in the shrouds and on the crow’s nest. 

“Cut to the chase, Captain.”, Fjord growled. Deep, verdant energy was starting to gather in one of his palms- he was about to summon the sword. 

“Neither of us want a fight, am I correct?” Fjord didn’t react to that in the slightest. “So… you have two options.” Everard idly strode back to stand between Hilla and Aurum. “First option, you let my crew search your ship, and yourselves. We will take anything that sparks out interest, and leave you alone after that.” Everard paused dramatically. 

Fjord slowly flexed his fingers, the green energy spilling out from between his fingertips. “What’s the second option?”

Marius realized what Everard was going to say one second before he did- a sensation as if someone pulled a rug from under his feet. 

“One of you crew members,” Everard gestured towards Marius, “Marius.” 

The silence that set in now was much more comical than the one before. 

Then, “You want  _ Marius _ ?!” Beau looked so entirely incredulous that her mouth hung open. 

Everard simply gave a nod. “Him and I are… acquainted.” 

Ten heads whipped around, all eyes on Marius again. Marius opened his mouth in shock, and then closed it again, unable to speak. Everard wanted  _ him  _ for booty? Had Everard stopped the Squall-Eater  _ knowing  _ he’d be on it?! A hand suddenly pushed into his- Shelda had somehow materialized by his side, her scimitar drawn.

“What do you want with our boatswain?”, Fjord asked distrustingly, holding out a hand at Shelda to stop her. 

Marius squeezed Shelda’s hand as he looked at Everard; the Captain looked straight back at him, grey eyes intense. Before he could answer the question, Beauregard spoke up again.

“You can’t just take Marius, he’s  _ our  _ crew member!”

Everard spoke only after a moment of pause. “Marius and I met on Darktow, the night before Avantika’s trial.”

Oh, no. 

Marius ducked his head, knowing what Everard was about to say next. He still hadn’t told anyone about what had happened that night, not even Shelda. 

“What the hells is he on about?!”, Shelda hissed beside him.

“I found him on the docks, bleeding and in pain, because someone had ...attacked  _ your crew member _ .” A pointed look towards Beauregard. Shelda’s grip around Marius’ hand tightened. “I healed him as best as I could, gave him some whiskey, and brought him back to your ship- the Mistake.” Everard clenched his teeth for a moment before continuing, fire in his voice. “When I told him that he should report the attack, he just laughed, and told me, no, he couldn’t talk to his Captain about something like that.” 

Marius felt his cheeks blush, and not in the nice way this time. Fjord glanced from Everard to Marius. His expression wasn’t one of betrayal, though, like Marius had expected… it was worry. 

“Is that true, Marius?”, he asked eventually. 

Marius cast down his eyes. He remembered that night, unfortunately. Remembered, how he’d thought about telling Fjord about what had happened, or telling any of them, really- they already made fun of him all the time, Beauregard had called him expendable on more than one occasion- 

“Yes, Captain.” 

Nobody spoke for a long moment. 

Then, Everard raised his voice again. “So, your pick, Captain Stone- we loot you… or Marius leaves with me.” 

“And what if I say no to either of these options, Captain Wyck?”, Fjord asked slowly. 

“I’d be sad that we didn’t come to an agreement, and then my crew would sink your ship and cut your throats.” Hearing Everard speak like this made a cold shiver run down Marius’ spine. 

Nobody spoke. Fjord‘s jaw was clenched hard enough that Marius worried for the integrity of his molars; Everard simply looked fierce and impressive, and yet, like a man who knew he was pulling the strings in a deal. 

When Fjord didn’t say anything for more than a few moments, Everard spoke up again. „How about this. I borrow Marius for a set time. How long will whatever you‘re up to take? If you‘ll really miss him as much as you say you might, you can have him back after that.  _ If  _ he wants to go.“ Everard very pointedly inclined his head towards Marius. 

  
  


“Fjord. Captain Stone.” Marius didn’t know where his voice had come back from. He let go off Shelda’s hand reluctantly, stepping forward. “...it’s alright. Let me go with him.”

“You’re not going anywhere!”, Shelda hissed behind him, but Marius ignored her. 

“He told the truth.”, he continued, voice wavering. Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Jester slowly covering her mouth with her hands. “...you’ve told me before that I’m expendable, and if having me leave will prevent a fight you won’t win-”

“We didn’t mean it like that!”, Beau called out. 

“Let him speak.”, Everard snarled at her, and for the first time, there was something like impatience in his voice. 

Marius looked at Fjord, and then at Orly who was standing at the helm, looking down at Marius with wide eyes. 

Fjord said nothing for a long stretch of time. When he eventually spoke, it was slow and controlled, and directed at Everard. „Our journey will be…“ Marius saw Fjord casting a look at Jester, who shrugged, holding up two fingers with an unsure expression, „around two weeks. We’ll let you know when we’re finished.“ He gritted his teeth again, then added, „We will find you if you don’t keep your end of the deal.“ Everard gave an accepting nod. But Fjord wasn’t finished. 

“Do you promise to keep him safe? Do you promise not to harm him, physically or otherwise?”

“I swear, Captain, that I won’t hurt or harm Marius. On my honor and my ship.” 

Marius felt the heat in his cheeks flare again when Fjord gave a brief nod, and then turned to him. “And you truly feel safe going with this man, Marius? It‘ll only be… two weeks or so.“ 

Marius swallowed hard. Knowing the Mighty Nein, these two weeks might become four days, or two months. Maybe this was the stupidest thing he’d ever done. But then again, if he said no now, who knew that the consequences would be. “Yes, Captain.”

„Thank you, for your...selflessness.“, Fjord said awkwardly. Marius could tell that he was trying hard to seem stern and professional in front of Everard. “Well. Then. Go ahead, I guess.” 

A triumphant smile spread on Everard’s face as Marius took a step towards him. 

“Marius!” Shelda’s voice was more emotional than Marius had ever heard it. When he turned around, she was already leaping at him, wrapping him in a hug, burying her face in his shoulder. Marius hugged her back tightly. 

“If you hurt him, we’ll curse you! We’ll find you and we’ll curse you and we’ll kill you!” Jester’s voice was shrill, to Marius’ surprise. 

“I have no intention of doing so, but feel free.”, Everard commented mildly. 

Slowly, Marius let go off Shelda, pressing his forehead against hers for a moment. “I’ll see you again, promise. In two weeks, or so.“ He knew that she knew that this was the lesser of two evils. 

“He better bring you back!“

Marius let go of her, stepping away, giving her one last smile before he turned, closing the last bit of distance between himself and Everard. The Captain was holding out a hand, and when Marius grabbed it, strong fingers wrapped around his hand. The edges of Everard’s eyes crinkled into a smile. 

He bowed at Fjord. “Pleasure doing business with you, Captain Stone. Safe passage.”

“Get off my ship.”, was all that Fjord gritted out from between his teeth.

“Gladly.”    
A whooshing noise- and then, there was water on Marius’ hand- Everard seemed to dissolve again, the way he’d done before- 

  
  


The last thing Marius saw before Everard Misty Stepped him onto the Lone Tide was Orly’s face, distorted in both pain and something else… knowing. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please comment or at least leave kudos if you enjoyed it! It really makes a difference :) also come talk to me on tumblr, my handle is marmeladednd... I'm doing kinktober 2020 atm so feel free to send suggestions as well!


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marius arrives on the Lone Tide. Things are confusing. A talk is had.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Enjoy :) it's always a bit strange to add OCs, but I hope you love them as much as I do.

Misty Stepping was a strange sensation- and not in the pleasant way. 

The moment Marius’ feet hit the deck of the Lone Tide, he swayed, falling against Everard’s side, and his stomach threatened to turn upside down. He dry-heaved once- whether it was just from the Misty Step, or from this whole situation, he didn’t know.

Strong arms caught him, and a hand settled on his back. “Are you alright?”

Marius nodded weakly, steading himself against Everard, trying to find his bearings again. 

They had landed on the Quarterdeck, it seemed. Marius blinked a few times, his eyes having to adjust to the light- more of those globules seemed to hover between the sails and scattered across the deck, dipping everything into this soft blue light, almost like moonlight.

A lot of eyes were turned up at him.

The Lone Tide’s crew was large- even larger than Avantika’s crew had been, but just as mismatched: humans, half-elves, half-orcs, a few dwarves, and, as much as Marius could discern in this low light, more exotic races as well. All of them staring at him and Everard.    
  
Marius slowly let go of the pirate Captain.

“Sailing out!”, Everard called across the deck casually, and just like that, the crew was in motion again, pulling ropes, righting sails. “And someone fix that bloody hole!”

Someone shouted “Aye Captain!” from somewhere, and Everard gave a satisfied nod. It was strange to see him commandeer this many people with such ease. 

A heavy impact behind them startled Marius. 

Hilla, the goliath woman, had landed behind them. If she had jumped again, like before, Marius didn’t know. A second later, Aurum landed much more gently next to her. This up close, the two were an impressive pair. Hilla had red, spiky tattoos running across her cheeks and her shaved head, and a massive silver ring pierced through her septum. Her entire body seemed to be made of stone- Marius was sure she could give Yasha a run for her money. Across her back, an appropriately-sized battleaxe was slung, blade as big as Marius’ entire torso, probably. Aurum looked almost delicate next to her, even though he wasn’t a small man, more on the slender side, but still muscled. His golden eyes shone brightly in the dark, standing out against his deeply black skin. The scarf wrapped around his hair looked expensive, purple, red and yellow, matching his patterned clothing.

Marius expected him to speak up, but instead, Aurum lifted his hands to about chest height, and moved them quickly, too quickly for Marius to follow. To his surprise, Everard next to him let out a small laugh before doing similar motions- they were signing to each other, Marius realized. 

Everard gave Aurum a final, apologetic shrug. “Sorry about the bird, friend.”

Aurum rolled his eyes, and threw up his hands in a universal gesture, then turned and sauntered off. 

“He’s a bit mad that he had to sacrifice Paloma for this.” Everard turned to Marius. His expression was an entirely different one to the one he’d carried down on the Squall-Eater, much more relaxed, much more… private. Marius’ mouth was as dry as a desert, and all he could do was to blink up at Everard dumbly. 

“...excuse me, this must all be a bit much for you.”

“You could say that.”, Marius said weakly. “What are you doing here?! Did you know I’d be-”

“Come.” Everard took him by the elbow with gentle assertiveness. “Let’s go talk in my quarters.” Already walking, he half-turned calling over his shoulder. “Hilla, get us back on course.” The Goliath woman just gave a gruff “Hm.” in response. To Marius, Everard explained, “We took a little detour to catch up with you.” 

Marius just let himself be led belowdecks to the captain's quarters. The Squall-Eater’s captain’s quarters had been quite nice (of course Shelda and him had gone snooping one time), but they had nothing on the captain’s quarters of the Lone Tide. Spacious, decked out in elegant, expensive-looking furniture and covered in what seemed like special spoils of the ship’s travels, Marius almost forgot they were at sea on a ship and not inside some sort of noble mansion. 

Off in the corner, he spotted an enormous, comfortable-looking four-poster bed; closer to the entrance there was a massive desk, scattered with maps and quills and other navigation devices. 

“Come, sit.” Everard pulled out a chair for Marius before walking around the desk and taking a seat on the other side of it, straightening his coat. There were lamps lit in here, and Marius could now make out the intricate embroideries on the fabric of the coat. 

Here, sitting down, in this warm, well-lit interior, Marius took a second to catch his breath. He could feel himself coming down from a massive adrenaline high, his limbs starting to feel like they were made of lead. 

A stress-yawn broke out of him. “Excuse me.”

Everard let out a soft laugh. “You haven’t even been on my ship for five minutes, and I’m already boring you?”

“No! Of course not- excuse me.” Marius felt his cheeks heat up. “Your… uh… pursuit of the Squall-Eater woke me.”

“You can sleep soon, if you’d like.”, Everard offered, “But I assumed we should talk first.” He paused, inclining his head a bit, one handsome curl falling out of place and into his eyes, “I basically just kidnapped you.” 

“Yes.” Marius paused, opening his mouth, unsure what to say. Eventually, he settled on, “You did, huh.” Another pause in which he tried, and failed, to grasp this entire situation while Everard just sat there and watched him do so, one black eyebrow cocked slightly. This was by far the strangest thing he’d ever experienced; if you looked at it from an outsider’s point of view, a pirate he’d met once before had just taken him hostage in exchange for the safety of his crew. “...would you really have killed them if I’d said no?” 

Everard let out a slow hum at that- a hum that brought back the shiver down Marius’ spine. “...I’d be an awful pirate if I wouldn’t stay true to my word, wouldn’t I?”, he said eventually. Marius clenched his hands in his lap-  _ “I know him, he’s nice!” _ ... what a fool he was. Everard was a pirate, an actual pirate-

“Once I realized you were on that ship, I assumed letting you go, at least for a while, would be a more desirable solution.” Everard’s voice had taken on a cold, business-like quality. Marius kept his eyes on his hands. 

„Quite the lousy loot.“, he said eventually. „I’m not very good at what I do, I bet your deckhands are better than me.“ 

„We‘ll see about that.“, Everard replied casually. 

„Why me?“, Marius asked after a moment of hesitation. „You… you barely know me.“

„Does that bother you?“, Everard asked, sounding genuine. „I didn’t think we were strangers, after all those messages.“

Marius in particular remembered the last of them, and it brought heat into his cheeks. „I just didn’t take you for… a philanthropist who takes in strays.“ 

Everard let out a laugh. „My crew will tell you that I seem to have a soft spot for strays. Might come with having been one myself.“ The laugh crinkled the corners of his eyes handsomely. „...but this isn’t that. I… I found myself intrigued by you, to be honest.“

Marius was almost shocked at the bluntness of it, stunned enough that he couldn’t reply anything to it. 

„You had this… sweetness, softness about you when we first met, and at first, I thought it was just what you had gone through that night, the shock, whatever. But then I saw you fighting with your crew on Darktow, and I wanted to check up on you, and then, later, in those messages… that softness was still there. I don’t know if you realize it, but when you talk… the smile in your voice is audible.“ Everard‘s own smile softened a bit and he looked down at the desk top. 

Marius was entirely speechless after this confession, sitting there on the opposite side of the desk, staring at Everard with his mouth open.

Of course he’d found Everard attractive from the moment he’d met him- physically, Everard was gorgeous- and the messages had deepened that attraction somewhat. He’d written it off as a silly little crush, since he barely knew the man, but hearing that Everard had been dealing with the same infatuation… 

„So… does that mean you kidnapped me… for a date?“ 

Everard‘s laugh was charming, if a little sheepish, and Marius was delighted to see a little bit of a blush spread on the man‘s cheeks as well. Good to know he wasn’t the only one who was capable of blushing. „It sounds terrible when you say it like this.“

„Yes, because you threatened my crew over it.“ Marius had to force the softness out of his voice for that. Everard‘s smile instantly dropped. 

„Are you angry about that? We would have pursued the Squall-Eater anyway, finding you there was just a bonus, Marius.“, Everard explained, voice a little more level now. „I  _ am  _ still a pirate.“

Marius was fighting the warm feeling it gave him whenever Everard’s said his name. „I know. I know.“ He knew he should probably be mad at Everard, he knew he should defend his crew more- after all they were down one man now. But the whole thing was just so… absurd. And, unfortunately, also weirdly romantic. Shit. 

„I want you to know“, Everard said, leaning forward across the desk a bit, his eyes serious, „that there are no… obligations. Nothing is expected of you. This is not that kind of thing.“

That hadn’t even occurred to Marius- but now that Everard had clarified, he was glad. „...thank you.“

„All I’m hoping for is to maybe get to know you better. And to show you how a crew that respects all of its members is run.“ The tight muscle on the side of Everard‘s jaw was back. 

Marius cast down his eyes. „It wasn’t  _ that  _ bad.“ 

Everard gave a respectful nod, leaning back in his seat again. „Just… see it as an internship, maybe.“

That made an involuntary laugh bubble out of Marius‘ chest. „From date to internship. Lovely.“

Everard let out another one of those charming laughs, and Marius felt a spark of pride at that. „Don’t tell my crew you managed to make me bashful within a few minutes of conversation, please.“ 

„I can’t promise anything.“, Marius said, feeling accomplished. Another yawn interrupted his train of thought. 

„I better show you to your cabin now, I reckon.“, Everard concluded after that yawn, pushing back his chair. 

—

Marius felt curious eyes on him as he followed Everard belowdecks. He ducked his head and tried not to catch any more attention than he already had- he hoped none of them were angry because they got him instead of gold, food or weapons. 

It was obvious that the Lone Tide had been built as an armada ship- the cabins were spacious, and the entire ship just looked  _ expensive _ . Maybe Marius would have some time to ask Everard about the details of how he’d acquired her. 

Everard showed him to a tiny chamber that seemed to be unused and clean- it only held one hammock and a crate. It looked nice and fine- but Marius couldn’t help but remember how comfortable the four poster bed in the Captain’s quarters had looked. 

“Good night, Marius.” Everard hadn’t even stepped inside the chamber- not enough space for both of them. 

“Good night, Captain Wyck.”

Everard gave him a small lopsided smile at that, and then closed the wooden door behind himself.

Marius stood in his new cabin for a moment, and then slowly sat down on the crate.

He’d lived through many a strange situation with the Mighty Nein- but this, whatever it was, took the cake. 

He blinked slowly, trying to sort out his thoughts. 

Everard had kidnapped him. Could it be called kidnapping if he planned to bring him back in two weeks?! 

Everard had also told him the reason why: because he was  _ intrigued  _ by him. Now, not even half an hour later, their talk in the captain’s quarters seemed like a fever dream, and Marius’ feelings were all over the place. He couldn’t name a single one of them- well, apart from confusion. And tiredness. 

Maybe things would make more sense tomorrow morning.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments make writers happy <3


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